Most efficient position for background-image property in a style sheet

Viewed 578

I am placing a large, non-repeating background image on my website using the CSS background property. Since the image is so large, it takes a long time for some connections to render the image.

Here is my CSS:

#wrapper {
    background: url('large-image.jpg) no-repeat center center;
}

I have already done the following to optimize the image for the web:

  • Reduced it to the lowest possible resolution that does not compromise quality
  • Changed the image type from a PNG to a JPEG
  • Styled the page so that the content is readable even without the background image

My question: To further optimize the image loading time, would it make a difference if I put the background tag at the bottom of my style sheet? Or would the effect of this be negligible?

I tend to order my CSS by the hierarchy of my HTML, so the #wrapper styles are at the top of my style sheet. Does the order of properties in a style sheet make a noticeable impact on load time when the user has a slower connection?

3 Answers
Related